


Money Power Glory

by sweetlarry



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Crimes & Criminals, Drama, Drugs, M/M, Mind Control, Painter Louis, Romance, Sad Ending, Singer Harry, SupernaturalPowers, Wealth, harryisbasicallyademon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-22
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2018-12-05 08:55:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11574708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetlarry/pseuds/sweetlarry
Summary: Harry Styles is a radiant beauty with eyes so divine he makes the whole room shine at one glance as the young man sips his summer wine. His voice is the perfect mix of cigar and honey, like an addictive drug that the helpless can't get enough of. His smile, more dazzling than the streets of Las Vegas, makes a girl feel like she's the only one. An alluring image, but a mind so vile, he's incapable of being truly loved.





	1. midnight blue

**Author's Note:**

> Hiiii i worked really hard on this so don't be mean i'm sensitive thank you. btw lots of lana references bc shes queen. 
> 
> (also theres a small scene that signifies suicide in this first chapter!!!!)

❧

 **A** n early rise in the bar is never the same as those after dark. Nights in the tavern are full of amusing people who are committed to living while they're young, while the cheating men looking to get away from the wife and children ruin cheery morning moods with their moping. There are the occasional midday customers that like to visit for a quick drink and a chat with the old bartender, Odin, but Harry Styles has made a reputation of passing out on the booths after drowning down spirits and singing Blue Velvet.

He's sleeping in the booth, legs dangled and face covered with his headscarf, where he partied with an unknown birthday girl and her group of friends. He was supposed to go home with the girl's brother, but plans changed when the brother's girlfriend arrived home from New York unexpectedly. It wasn't a big deal to Harry that he wouldn't have a bed to sleep in that night since he always has his booth, but sometimes it can be a real pain the ass, like times like these when the cheating fathers are already drunk and won't let him sleep in peace.

"Hey," Harry calls out to the group of men sitting at the table in front of his booth. "Can you all shut the fuck up?"

The men sit there staring at each other, wondering what to say back or do. _Bunch of cowards_ , Harry grumbles in his head. He gets up from where he lies, slips on his maroon Chelsea boot, and heads to the bar where Odin is serving a man that Harry's well familiar with.

"Hello, Harry." Odin greets. "Sleep well?"

The man lowers his head at the sound of that name. It makes Harry smirk.

"Fine. Thank you." He says, taking a seat and looking down at the man that used to do anything to make him feel like royalty. "Aren't you going to greet me or ask how I am, Evan?"

The man, Evan, desperately doesn't want to face Harry, but something in him overcomes his willpower and lifts his head to look directly into those forest green eyes. "How are you?" He says, voice low and emotionless. Harry smiles, "Much better now that I'm talking to you." He moves his hand up Evan's thigh, making the older man tense up at the feeling of his touch. Harry moves closer, lips closer, until the shouts of one of the men from the table startles Evan and he jumps from his seat. Harry feels anger fill his veins and whips his head towards the man that ruined it.

"Take back what you said!" The man yells, pointing a gun towards Harry's head. The man, short and stubby, looks unsure of his actions and most likely was pressured by his friends to take action at what Harry told them earlier because they're too afraid to do so.

"Put the gun down," Odin says, carefully approaching the shaking man. "I promise you'll regret doing this. Please, put it down."

"You're wasting your time." Harry says to Odin. He's sat in his seat, stirring a little pink straw in his mimosa. "He won't do shit."

"You don't know anything!" The man says. "You don't know anything about me!" He moves a finger to pull the trigger, but suddenly points the gun to himself. One of his friends reacts faster and smacks the gun from his hand. "Huey! What happened?" He says, panicked and startled.

"I-I don't know," Huey says, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "I-I don't know why I did that? I-I didn't mean to?" Odin interrupts the men and makes them leave his bar immediately if didn't want to hear from police, telling them it would be best if they were to never come back.

When he returns, he finds Harry behind the bar, helping himself to another mimosa and a confused Evan staring at him. Harry giggles when he sees Odin giving him a _'what the hell just happened?'_ look. It isn't the first time Harry has had a gun pointed to his head, so he isn't as shocked as the other two men are. He thinks back to the time he was walking down the streets of an old town he somehow ended up in, marveled at all the interesting stores and intoxicated people of the night. He wasn't afraid, he never is. He wasn't afraid either when a man standing in front of a sketchy building grabbed his arm and dragged him into an empty room. The man told him that he was his boss' property now, and if he refused, they would shoot him. Harry didn't say anything, only thinking how stupid the man is for not blind folding him or tying him up. In the boss' room, a tall woman stood in front of the cluttered desk, smiling upon seeing Harry and his prince-like appearance. They were left alone, and the woman told him he's beautiful, but the young man told her she's a bitch. Shocked, the woman told him he's dead for disrespecting the leader of the town's most powerful gang. Then, Harry smirked and told her she's dead for disrespecting a god. He later walked out of the building as if nothing happened, as if his hands weren't stained with blood.

Grinning at the memory, Harry takes Evan's hand, says his farewells to Odin, and heads to the streets. Harry tries to talk about the events in the bar but Evan would rather try to forget about it.

"Why are you doing this?" Evan asks instead, referring to them walking together. He's confused on why his ex-boyfriend is now talking to him a week after they broke up. It was Harry who ended things. He said he was never in love with him and used him for his money, but got bored of the façade and wanted something else. It was a big surprise for Evan since Harry never showed any intention in breaking up or the fact that he didn't love him at all. He wishes he could get over Harry as quick as he did for him, but he can't, he's still madly in love.

Harry, still holding his hand, looks straight ahead and keeps walking without saying a word. They stop at a convenience store and Harry goes to the back of the store to grab a bottle of strawberry lemonade.

"I didn't know you liked lemonade." Evan chuckles.

Harry shrugs, handing him the bottle. "Pay for it? I spent my money on mimosas." The older man takes it without a hesitation and together they walk to the cashier. "A pack of cigarettes, as well." Evan says. The cashier nods and hands him over the pack, much to Harry's disgust.

"Something wrong?" Evan asks as they leave the store and walk further into town. It's around 1:00 p.m. The autumn sky looks beautiful as ever, there are crowds of people out shopping for early Halloween decorations, and an aroma of fresh baked breads and cinnamon cookies fill the sweet air. Harry takes a sip of strawberry lemonade and tries not to gag at the smell of tobacco that Evan breathes out. "Yeah, your smoking is shit. When did you start?" Evan puts his cigarette out and throws it away, looking down at his packet with a frown. "Well, I guess, after you broke up with me. I mean I smoked when I was a teen but...yeah, I don't know. I can definitely stop if you don't like it." Harry rolls his eyes at how desperate Evan is to please him. It was wonderful at first since he was showered with praise, love, and gifts, but now it's just annoying and irritating.

"I don't care. Just don't do it around me." Harry says, stopping as they've reached Evan's car. "I have to go."

"Wait!" Evan reaches for Harry's elbow but backs off as the younger man gives him a death glare. "Can't I just take you out to dinner? Please."

"No."

"I don't understand!" Evan grabs his hair in frustration. "You flirt with me at the bar twenty minutes ago and now it's like you hate me or something!"

"You're being a little bitch." Harry wants to slap some sense into him, but there's families around that would overreact and call the police.

Evan huffs, calming himself down and taking Harry's hand into his. "Please, Harry. Just come back to my house and I'll cook you something there. Just this last time and I'll leave you alone forever." Harry can easily say no, but he knows Evan has something else planned for him than just a dinner and he wants to know what that asshole has plotted in his mind. Therefore, he agrees to the dinner with a sweet, convincing smile.

 

❈

 

1:00 a.m. flashes red in the digital clock.

Evan is fast asleep by Harry's side. He looks peaceful, soft, and gorgeous in the moonlight. "What a shame." Harry says, stroking his feathery, black hair. "We could've been something but you decided to be an unconfident pansy and fuck it up for yourself." With a small kiss to his cheek, Harry swings his legs off the bed and takes his time to dress himself before walking out and taking a look in the kitchen. He ponders on what to steal, deciding on a banana and shoving it in the big pouch of his grey hoodie. As her rounds the kitchen door, he suddenly comes face-to-face with a wide-awake Evan.

"Leaving already?" He says, voice low. It's the first time that Harry truly doesn't know what to do, so he just decides to see what happens as he originally planned. He breathes heavily, standing there like a helpless child. Evan smiles. "I've got you now, Styles. I'm going to show you what happens to bad people like you who cheat and lie. You're going to regret everything you've done to me." He grabs onto Harry's waist and drags him to his bedroom as the younger man tries to fight him off, shouting and pounding his fights to try to break free. He ties him to the headboard of the bed, smirking the entire time as Harry begins to cry. "You're a monster!" Harry yells at Evan's face. "I should've known you were like this!" Evan laughs, wiping Harry's tears away. "I'm not the monster, Harry. You are. You decided to be a lying whore and made me do this. You brought this upon yourself. I just happened to be the one that fate chose to teach you a lesson."

Harry looks down at his lap and whispers shakily, "What are you going to do to me?"

Evan goes over to his dresser and pulls out a knife, grinning like an absolute madman. "The only way to stop you from breaking another heart is to get rid of that beautiful face of yours."

Harry scoffs. "You wouldn't."

Evan raises an eyebrow, surprised at the sudden mood change but doesn't let it ruin his motive in ruining his ex's million-dollar face. "Watch me." He lifts the knife up to Harry's skin, letting the younger boy feel the sharpness of the knife near his pure flesh. "What a shame," Evan says, "We could've been something but you decided to be a cocky asshole and fuck it up for yourself." Harry closes his eyes, waiting for the sharp pierce into his skin, but it never comes. He reopens his eyes and sees Evan lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood with a knife stabbed deep into his leg.

"Fuck!" He groans in pain. "You did this to me, witch!"

Harry pouts as he unties himself from the loose knots. "But baby," He says innocently. "I was sat over there tied up. How could I've made you stab yourself?" Evan doesn't answer, only clenches his teeth in agony and tries to keep himself awake but it's no use by how much blood he's losing. With time running out, he watches Harry circle around his room, picking at stuff, looking at things, and eventually sits by his body and takes his head into his hands. He feels the younger boy's hot breath near his ear and stays conscious enough to hear him whisper, "Forget any memories you have of me."

 

❈

 

_911 what is your emergency?_

_911 what is your emergency?_

_Hello?_

Harry drops the cellphone by Evan's body without hanging up. He would've never believed that Evan was so psychotic, but he should've expected it based of how obsessive he is. Obsession can drive a person to do anything.

Outside, Harry takes a seat on the porch and dials the number of the only person he trusts. He answers on the last ring.

"Hey." Zayn greets.

"Listen," Harry says impatiently. "I need a ride. Fast."

"I'm kind of busy right now."

"Zayn," Harry runs a hand through his hair. "Nothing you're doing can be more important than the shit that's going to happen to me if you don't get your ass to Evan's house, _now_."

Zayn stays quiet for a few seconds. "Did you kill him, or?"

"I'm going to kill _you_ if you don't hurry _up_."

"Chill out. Honestly, though, I can't. Hold on." Harry listens to Zayn's muffled voice talking to somebody else. In the distance, he hears the police sirens. "My friend is going to get you." Zayn says eventually. "Wait for him at the park." He hangs up, and Harry is left alone to care for himself until Zayn's unknown friend picks him up. As he's walking away, the police arrive but don't suspect anything of the white boy in an over sized hoodie.

"Dumb asses." Harry mumbles, walking away a freeman.

The neighborhood park is a secluded area that takes a sharp eye to find; it's a horrible appearance with dead trees and a rusty playground that will break with a single touch. The grass is long dead, the benches look like they were set on fire, and the trash cans have spots of dried blood. Harry spots a group of teenagers in the middle of the park smoking weed and exchanging little plastic bags of cocaine. Not wanting to not go anywhere near them, Harry sits on the sidewalk a good distance away and waits. Time goes by slow.

He dozes off for a second, feeling the cool breeze brush his skin, before being blinded by a bright headlight. A shiny, black Range Rover pulls up beside him, blasting Frank Ocean and catching the attention of the druggie teens. Harry can't see who it is through the window since it's so dark, but when he opens the door and the lights turn on, he's struck with a feeling so rare and deadly.

 

❧


	2. sapphire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> harry has a lot of mixed emotions in this chapter enjoy

❧ 

Sunday nights in Mourney’s Apartment Complex are more bland and boring than beige. The residents have no desire for anything other than the lottery and nighttime television while their frozen dinners heat up in the microwave. Unlike them, an aspiring artist in room 228 lives among them with passion so bright and a heart of gold.  

There are paints buckets scattered across the room and sheets coated in mixtures of cherry red and electric blue. The empty canvasses stare back at Louis Tomlinson, longing for creativity to splatter upon them. The window's open and he can hear the jazz musician's music and sounds of joyful singing, but why isn’t any of it sparking inspiration? Louis has visited Paris for the weekend to cure himself of artist's block, and now that he’s back to his lifeless Apartment Complex, it’s worse than ever.  

He takes a small paint brush and dips it in red, carefully swirling a plain circle on the canvas just as Zayn walks into the room. The Bradford man has a blunt in his mouth and his cellphone in his hand. He looks exhausted, but there’s never a time when he’s not. "I need a favor." He says, leaning against the doorframe. "A guy I know needs a ride to my place. Will you take him?" Louis sets down his paint brush and nods in agreement. "Yeah, no problem. I was planning to go for a drive, anyways. Who is he?"  

"He's an ass," Zayn says blatantly, “but he's a close friend. His name's Harry." 

"Harry?" Louis says, reaching behind the couch for his keys and shirt. "You've never spoken about him."  

Zayn shrugs. Louis gets the hint that he wants to go, so they leave his apartment and head down to the parking lot. After Zayn gives him the address, he drives onto the streets, windows down and speakers blasting his current favorite artist, Frank Ocean. His mind drifts off and thinks about the young, talented girl he met in Paris. The girl, Adelia, was so full of life and showed kindness to everyone. At only thirteen, she’s had her paintings displayed in the Museum of Modern art, an achievement Louis only could dream of. She shared wonderful tips and even gave him one of her favorite brushes, something he will treasure forever.  

As Louis approaches the trashed park half an hour later, he sees a boy sat on the sidewalk with his head in his hands. He's not certain it's Harry, but he would rather not go ask the group of drugged up teens if they've seen Zayn's friend. He pulls up to the curb and Harry doesn’t hesitate to climb in right away, but something stops him in his tracks. Louis taps his fingers against the steering wheel, feeling uncomfortable at the way the boy stares at him. "Are you alright, mate?" He says, watching Harry snap back to reality and sink into his seat. "Yeah," Harry rubs the side of his head. "I just...thought of something." Louis nods, staring out the windshield and waiting for Harry to settle himself.  

“So,” Louis says, speeding away. “You are Harry, right? Or did I accidentally pick up a hooker?”  

Harry smiles, looking down at his lap. “I’m Harry, yeah.” He doesn't know why he's feeling so odd. It's like he's not himself around this stranger. "Zayn didn't tell me your name."  

"Of course he did not.” Louis says lightheartedly. “My name’s Louis. It’s very nice to meet you.”  

Harry's stomach tingles at the sound of his name. It makes him want to jump out of the car. "Likewise." He murmurs. They fall into a comfortable silence after. As Harry senses Louis daze off, he peeks over to take in the man's gorgeous feature when they pass by streetlights. He takes note of how sexy Louis looks with his stubble, yet soft with his small, button nose. He has tattoos on his arms, and a low scoop shirt that reveals deep collarbones and another tattoo that says, 'it is what it is' across his chest. His brunette hair is so heavenly in the wind, Harry wants to run his fingers through it and feel the softness of it.  

"I can't take it." Harry blurts out. The pain of thinking about Louis in such a way is driving him mad. He’s never fallen for someone so quick and deep.   

"Huh?" Louis rubs his eye. "My apologies, I've been daydreaming a lot lately." 

Harry takes in a deep breath, relaxing his nerves. This isn't supposed to happen. People are supposed to fall in love with him, not the other way around. He hates feelings and wants to destroy it with fire. The last time he fell in love was five years ago when he was sixteen, a time when Harry was deep in misery, and the man that he loved left for someone else who was actually mentally stable and happy. Harry had cried for weeks, lying in Zayn’s bedroom and refusing to leave until realization dawned on him and his tears turned into rage. A day later he sat in front of the T.V in the arms of his new lover, watching the news anchor talk about a tragedy that occurred in their town: a man and his partner were mysteriously found dead in their home that morning. Harry could only smirk and say, "It's a cruel world out there." 

As they stop at a red light, Harry sees Odin's bar in the distance and knows it's the perfect place to free himself from the madness. "Mind dropping me off at that bar by Prisma Theater?" He says, already unbuckling himself. Louis hesitates, seeing as it's 2:03 in the morning and he can practically see the cry for sleep in Harry’s eyes and a mix of alcohol would just fuck him up, but who the hell is he to tell him what to do? With deep regret, he parks on the street and watches as Harry stumbles out the car, waving to him goodbye. Louis can't bring himself to drive away and leave him there alone when he's so vulnerable, so he turns the car off and gets out. Harry's at the front of the bar trying to open the door, shouting, “Open, bitch!” 

“Love,” Louis sighs, grabbing onto his waist and gently moving him back. “It’s closed.”  

Harry huffs. Odin is going to regret closing his bar early when he's in desperate need for vodka and a man to go home with.  

A crew of intoxicated girls walk by them laughing and bumping into each other in neon six-inch pumps, clearly looking like they've come out of the club. Harry stops them, asking if they've seen any bar open. "Oh, yeah!" One of the girls in a red dress exclaims. She can't even look at Harry directly in the eye because of how drunk she is. "I think I saw Woodrock open… I think?" Quickly thanking her, Harry heads down the street with Louis in tow and the two find the bar, Woodrock, open and lively of spirited people. Harry has only been there once, but the memory of him dancing on the tables to shit music while strangers cheer him on and throw money sparks the excitement he was looking for.  

"Two shots of vodka," Harry asks the bartender as he sits on the only available stool. Louis appears behind him, whispering closely in his ear that he's seen friends of his and would be back soon. Harry nods, holding the shot close to his lips and watching the older man walk to a booth where a group of people greet him ecstatically. The other shot was supposed to be for him, but since he left, Harry drowns it down after his own. He looks around at all the people chatting amongst themselves and eating fries, though he doesn't find anyone charming enough to sneak in the bathroom with. What does appeal to him is the beautiful piano that sits in the corner of the bar.  

"Hand me a beer, sir," He waves over the bartender. "I'm about to sing my heart out." 

Bottle in hand and spotlight shining on him, he drops onto the piano bench and taps onto the microphone, catching the attention of the whole room as he always does. He clears his throat and begins to play. 

"I feel free when I see no one, and nobody knows my name," He sings, closing his eyes and feeling himself melt into the music. He hasn't sung in a while and it feels damn great to do it. "God knows I live, God knows I died, Gods know I begged, begged, borrowed and cried."  

At the end of the song, Harry stands on the stool and throws beer at the cheering crowd, then when the claps die down, he stumbles over to where Louis stands alone and falls onto him. Louis holds him, smiling and rubbing circles into his back. "You have a very lovely voice." He says, arms wrapped around the boy. "I could fall asleep to it." Harry eyes shut at the sound of 'sleep' and he uses any energy left in him to follow Louis out of the bar, leaning in close and taking in his body warmth. The night has grown cooler, darker, and quieter. Louis looks down at Harry snuggled into his neck and feels fondness at the sight of him looking so gorgeous in the moonlight. While Harry was singing, Louis could only think of painting his emerald eyes, scarlet lips, and chocolate curls. The wall that was restricting his passion to paint had been broken and Harry was the cause for it. At that moment, he knew he was the one.  

"I am taking you home," Louis tells Harry in the car. "Is that alright?" 

Harry nods, half-asleep in his seat. "Home." He mumbles.  

By the time they reach the apartment complex, Harry's fast asleep and Louis doesn't have the heart to wake him from his slumber, so he does the only possible reasonable thing and carries him up to his apartment. He's glad Harry's asleep so he doesn't see the mess Zayn made with bags of McDonald's and energy drinks on his coffee table, or the fact that the living room smells straight up like weed. In his bedroom, he takes Harry's shoes off before lying him in his bed and placing the duvet over him, but spots a banana shaped outline in the pocket of his hoodie. "Of all things," Louis laughs softly, poking Harry’s belly. He already has aspirin and a wattle bottle on the nightstand, so he shuts the door and walks to his favorite room in the whole apartment, ready and inspired to create art.  

  

 

❈ 

 

 

The morning sunlight illuminates the room beautifully with colors of warm orange and yellow. It's quiet, but peacefully mellow. Harry feels content wrapped up in the cool duvet and head lying on the softest pillow he's ever felt. He hasn't had a good night's rest in months and last night felt like a dream by how comfortable he slept. He takes a look out the window, seeing as the sun's just rising, and smiles at the thought of how his night went a few hours ago.  

"Sleep well?"  

Harry's head turns faster than a deer in headlights. A woman with short, black hair is sat on the corner of the bed, smoothing down her white, tailored suit. She crosses her legs, grinning at how shocked Harry is. "I'm guessing by your bed hair that you did."  

Harry sighs, seeing that it’s just his guardian, Marina, and tucks his curls behind his ear. "Why are you here?"  

Marina shrugs and stands up. She looks around the room and picks up a picture of Louis hugging a fawn-colored Collie with a young boy dressed in footie attire by his side. "Am I not allowed to visit you?" She asks, standing in front of Harry as he settles back down onto the bed. "I created you, I made you who you are. I'm practically your mother!"  

"You're not." Harry grumbles. "Tell me what you want then leave me alone." 

"I don't want anything from you." Marina rolls her eyes. "I just wanted to say that I'm happy that you've fallen in love with someone that's actually not a scum." 

"I'm not in love."  

"You are!" Marina grabs ahold of Harry's shoulders and looks straight into his eyes. "Harry Styles, listen to me for once in your life, get your head out of your stubborn ass, and admit that you're in love with Louis Tomlinson. Trust me when I say he feels the same way about you. Please, I want to see you happy again." Harry's eyes water as he thinks about all the times he's fallen in love when he was younger and how many times he's had his heart broken. This time, however, he knows that it's different. Louis is different. He's not like any of them. Harry loves him and wants nothing more but to give him everything he has and hopes with all his heart that Louis feels the same way.  

Harry lays his head in his hands and cries until he can't no more. When he looks up, Marina is gone. He wipes the tears away, staring blankly at the wall and hugging the duvet closely to his chest. There's pills and water on the nightstand, but decides only on the water. He waits for any trace of crying to disappear from his face before stepping out of the bedroom and following the sound of classic piano into a room where he finds Louis standing in front of a large canvas. He's created a color field painting of greens, reds, and browns. He turns around, and Harry smiles at how breathtaking he looks standing there surrounded by art. It's a moment he doesn't want to forget. 

"Harry," Louis wipes away the paint from his hands with a damp rag. "What do you think?" He's referring to his painting, and Harry thinks it's absolutely stunning. Louis grins when the younger boy tells him, holding out his hand and telling him to take a closer look. Harry takes it and together they walk up to the painting and admire every detail, hand-in-hand. "What did you name it?" Harry asks.  

Louis looks at him with desire in his eyes and says, "Styles."  

 

❧

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> appreciate real authors bc writing a story is actually really hard (rip me)


	3. electric

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not a regular writer i'm a cool writer

❧

 

Louis hasn't experienced a truly happy day ever since the death of his little brother left him with an empty spot in his heart, but now that Harry is in his life to fill the void, the despairing days spent alone are behind him.

They're lying together under the bedroom sheets, holding onto each other and taking in every moment they have until Harry has to leave for Louis to finish important work. Harry hums as he traces the stag tattoo on Louis’ bicep with the tip of his finger, feeling the softness of his tanned skin. "I don't want to leave." He mumbles, seeing that Zayn has texted Louis that he’s just pulled up to the building. Louis runs a hand through his hair and sighs. He doesn't want him to leave either but he has piles of papers to look over and sign, and with Harry around, that little minx would just distract him and he'd never finish. He looks over at his boy's wine-stained lips and pulls him in for a kiss. Harry deepens it and climbs over his body to straddle him, but the phone rings obnoxiously and they both know it's time to leave.

After changing into clothes and tying a grey headscarf into his hair, Harry follows Louis into the elevators where a family of three huddle together in the corner as both boys walk in. Harry smiles in amusement at how afraid they seem of him. He leans his back onto Louis' chest, staring at the family wickedly until the elevator dings and they run out just as the doors open. "I always had a feeling you were a people person." Louis says sarcastically, making Harry roll his eyes playfully.

It's a cloudy day out with a cool breeze that makes it perfect weather for sweaters and hot chocolate. It has been raining the past three days, so Louis and Harry have been cooped up in his apartment doing nothing but painting and having sex. He even cooked Louis a steak dinner since the older man doesn’t have any experience in cooking and Harry wanted to do something special for him. They ate by the fire and shared a bottle of Rosé, ending the evening with a molten lava cake topped with maraschino cherry ice cream.

Outside, in the back of the building, Zayn stands near the dumpsters smoking a cigarette while Liam sits in the open trunk of his car with his knees pulled up to his chest. They both look stressed and the tension between them is restless and unbearable. When Louis and Harry approach them, Zayn automatically puts out his cigarette since he knows how uneasy Harry gets around tobacco.

"Hand one over." Louis says, reaching for the pack but Zayn steps back, gesturing his head towards Harry's direction. The younger boy has his arms crossed, looking irritated that Louis smokes and Zayn hasn't bothered to quit but can't say shit since he has in own issues with alcohol. "Don't look at me." Harry says bitterly. Zayn rolls his eyes, telling him to sit in the car and shut up.

Louis glances over at Liam and sees that Harry is angrily trying to make him talk, but the older man just sits there ignoring him with his head bowed. "I have never seen him so depressed." He sighs. "What did you do to him?"

Zayn pretends he didn't hear him. He doesn’t want to get into a discussion right now.

Louis has a feeling that he knows, but is hesitant to say it. "Did... did you cheat on him?"

Zayn crushes the packet of cigarettes in his hand and throws it on the ground. "It's none of your damn business to ask."

"I just--”

“Shut up the fuck, Louis!”

Louis steps back, surprised at the way he exploded on him. Zayn has never gotten furious at him, and he didn’t expect him to do it so suddenly.

With an expressionless face, Liam walks behind Zayn and grabs onto his arm. "Let's go." He tells him and Zayn listens without dispute. They don’t say goodbye, so Louis drags himself back to the apartment for a long day of work.

They sit in in silence on the drive to Harry's favorite café in the beautiful part of downtown. Now that it’s autumn, the scene is even more stunning with fairy lights hanging on the lampposts and different shades of orange leaves scattered on the sidewalks. The clouds are slowly separating, letting in rays of sunshine through their gaps. Harry marvels at the sight, while Liam and Zayn remain deep in thought. They argue more and more each day and it's come to the point that they're both considering breaking up after nine years together. It hasn't been easy, but their relationship was more difficult when it began in high school.

Liam was an 18-year-old senior athlete who received perfect grades, had a beautiful blonde girlfriend, and never had to worry about money since his parents were both very successful accountants. He was living the dream, a dream he often thinks about today. On the other hand, Zayn's life wasn't so effortless. He was a 16-year-old sophomore who distant himself from other people since his religious town didn’t accept those who were gay. He was beaten in his run-down home by his father and bullied at school by teachers and students.

One afternoon at school, Liam walked through the doors of the cafeteria with his girlfriend, Lena, clung to his side while she giggled at all the attention she received. They sat at their regular table in the middle of the cafeteria and all his football friends were there to praise him on his winning touchdown at last night’s game. As time went on, he distanced himself from the conversation and found himself looking around at the students instead. He got bored of seeing all the average faces until his eyes landed on a dark-haired boy who sat alone in the back reading _To Kill a Mockingbird_. He interested him particularly because of the flower tattoo on his arm. Liam had always wanted his skin covered in tattoos because of how cool it looked, but if he dared to get a single mark on him, his parents would disown him for life.

After two hours of football practice after school, Liam sat in his car trying to hydrate himself when he spotted Zayn sitting under a tree reading his book. He wondered why Zayn was still at school and wanted to talk to him, so he did, much to Zayn's surprise. They had an awkward introduction at first, but they soon got more comfortable and eventually Liam got Zayn to smile. Naturally it became a routine; Liam would meet Zayn under the tree after practice and the younger boy would be there waiting patiently. It wasn't a surprise that Liam grew feelings for him since he always knew deep inside that he was gay, so the next day he picked up the prettiest flowers from his mother's garden and prepared himself on how he was going tell Zayn how he felt. He drove to Zayn's house the second he could, feeling more nervous than ever, but what he saw as he drove by made his heart drop.

Zayn lied in his front yard unconscious, skin bruised and head bleeding, while his father watched from the window of his living room, sickly smiling at the sight of his son. Liam waited for the man to close the curtains before sneaking into the yard and hoisting Zayn over his shoulder easily since the boy was so light. He drove home and saw his mother crying on the porch when he pulled up the driveway. She didn't let Liam get near her when her son tried to help her, only telling him that Lena saw how he and Zayn were acting around each other and how disgusted she felt when the girl told her. Liam tried to explain himself but she wouldn't listen and yelled at the top of her lungs to leave because God hated homosexuals.

Liam didn't know what to do, so he left.

He got back in the car, looked over at Zayn's fragile body, and made the decision to leave town and never look back. It was selfish of him to make that choice for Zayn, but he knew that the younger boy would never go back to his father's house and live a life of abuse. Ever since then it has just been the two of them and they can't imagine how things would be like without each other.

 

❈

 

The café is bubbling with talk and laughter from customers drinking their hot cups of tea and coffee. The staff is bustling around taking orders, displaying pastries, and making Instagram-worthy latte art.

Liam and Zayn are sat across from each other in a booth, looking at anything but each other. They haven't said much ever since the incident occurred; Liam was out the whole night

working and came home to find Zayn passed out in bed with an unknown man lying next to him. Both tried to explain that it was a drunk mistake, but Liam didn't listen, only lashed out on the bloke and kicked him out. He couldn't even look Zayn in the eye when he went back inside, just took a shower and slept in the guest bedroom for the rest of the day.

"This shit is burning my hands." Harry says when he returns from ordering a coffee. He sets the porcelain mug on the wooden table and shows the two men a receipt with a phone number written on it. "I flirted with the girl and told her I wanted to take her out for a drink, so she gave me her phone number and a free coffee." He laughs, falling into the booth next to Liam and handing him a twenty-dollar bill. "Sorry, daddy. I promise I'll let you buy me a coffee next time." Zayn glares at him. Liam takes the money.

"So, you and Louis," Liam rubs his neck awkwardly. "I'm guessing there's a thing between you two."

Harry nods contentedly. "More than a thing. The situation was a bit dramatic at first but very romantic. After he showed me the painting that I inspired him to make, we confessed our love for each other and fucked right then and there."

"Do you ever have a filter?" Zayn blurts out.

"Do you have a stick up your ass?" Harry fires back.

Zayn gets up and walks out of the café, not in the mood to be around either of two. Liam goes out a second later and joins him where he's sat on a bench but keeps a small space between them. They don't say anything for minutes and it hurts Zayn since the only reason they're acting like this is because he made a mistake. With a shaky voice, he breaks the silence. "I'm sorry." He whispers, eyes watering. Liam doesn't know what to say. Zayn keeps going. "I'm sorry that I fucked up and ruined things between us. I regret going out drinking so bad and I-I don't even remember whatever happened between me and that bastard but I will do anything to make it up to you. I just want things to go back to the way they were. Please, forgive me. If you want to fuck someone else to get back at me then do it--"

"Zayn." Liam takes his hand and holds it tightly in his own. "Don't say that. I would never dream of being with anyone other than you."

Zayn lets out the breath he's been holding in, feeling more relaxed now that Liam is talking to him. "Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?"

"Going on a date would definitely help." Liam smiles, wrapping an arm around Zayn's shoulder. "How about a movie? Just you and me..." The door jingle of the café rings and they both hear the familiar boot taps walk towards them. "And Harry." Liam sighs.

"Aw," Harry coos at the sight of Zayn and Liam cuddling. "You two are so cute. Just like my sweet, precious Louis." Zayn and Liam give each other a confused look the second those words come out of Harry's mouth. Clearly they didn't spend much time talking when they were alone in the apartment. With amusement in his voice, Zayn asks Harry what Louis does for a living but the younger boy just shrugs and takes a sip out of his rose gold flask. Zayn hesitates whether to tell him just in case Louis was waiting to tell him another time, then realizes he doesn't care. "Harry," Zayn says, trying to hold in a laugh at how idiotic Harry looks when he's confused. "Louis is a fucking drug lord."

Harry stands there staring at Zayn.

"Did Louis not say anything about it?" Liam asks and Harry shakes his head. "What did you think he does for a living?" Harry frowns and sticks his bottom lip out as he thinks about the question. He hasn’t really thought about what Louis does. If anything, he would've never guessed Louis' a drug baron since he doesn’t seem rough enough to take down a man who hasn’t paid him for heroin or some other illegal issue.

"I don't know." Harry huffs. "How do you expect me to know that? I only met him four days ago." Zayn doesn't bother to answer back to that ridiculous statement, knowing that a dispute with Harry would never end until he wins the argument. "Do you want to go to one of his warehouses to see it yourself?" Zayn asks instead.

"Is he there?"

"No."

"Oh." Harry says disappointingly.

They head back to the car and drive nearly an hour out of town just to get to the only warehouse Liam and Zayn know about. Apparently, Louis has four more hidden across the country and possibly even more. Harry doesn’t know whether he should be turned on by the fact that Louis is so powerful and wealthy, or mad that he chose to keep it a secret. He asks Zayn about it but the man ignores him and smokes his blunt.

"Zayn." Harry whines. "Tell me."

Zayn groans, wishing that he could kick the kid's ass out of the car. "I don’t know, Harry. I bet you didn’t even tell him that you're a mind control freak so stop with your bitching." Harry sits back, fazed by the thought of having to tell and explain to someone of what his brain is capable of doing. Liam and Zayn only know because he accidentally told them when he was drunk and they were sober enough to remember. He never wants to go through that again, not even if Louis is the love of his life. He doesn’t want to.

The conversation ends when they park on the side of the road and get out to darkness and complete silence. There are no cars or any sign of animals around, just moonlight and stars to illuminate their surroundings.

"I hope they know we're coming." Liam says, turning on his flashlight as they walk deeper into the forest and it gets harder to see. "I don't want to get shot at." Zayn shakes his head and shoves his hands into the pockets of his jacket. "We won't. Niall already knows." Harry wants to ask who Niall is but sees a small warehouse in the distance surrounded by a barbed wire fence. As they get closer, he sees a brunette-haired man standing at the gate with a large German Shepard sitting by his side. "Boys," The man greets. "Glad to see you again."

"Nice to see you again, Niall." Liam says, shaking his hand. Zayn follows after. While the three converse, Harry quietly sneaks inside with the dog and walks aimlessly through the long aisles until he sees two men pass him and go into a hidden basement. There's a burly man guarding the door, but it doesn’t take Harry long to take control of the nerves inside his brain and make the man pass out on the spot. Harry smirks, sneaking his way down the basement and entering what seems like an underground tunnel that leads to different rooms. He hears Niall's loud voice from above, so he begins to run, feeling the excitement through his veins, and his heart beating faster as footsteps grow closer. When his legs grow tired, he goes into a random room and slams the door shut, falling onto the floor tiredly and letting the dog lie on his lap.

Harry doesn't hear anything after that. It's too dark in the room to see where he is, so he just waits. He takes his flask out of his coat pocket and drowns the strong whiskey until it's nearly gone and he's feeling woozy.

He doesn't remember passing out.

When he opens his eyes again, he's blinded by a light and curses at the pain, forcing his eyes to adjust at the brightness. He's stunned to see Niall standing right in front of him with a straight face and a gun in his hand. Zayn and Liam are nowhere to be seen, just muscular men dressed in black suits. Harry stares right back at the blue-eyed man with no fear in his eyes and drinks the remainder of his whiskey without breaking eye contact. The group of hitmen look at Niall to see his reaction, but the man confuses the whole room when he doesn't shoot Harry's brains out, instead bursts out in laughter and shouts, "What a lad!" He helps Harry up from the floor and pats him on the back. "You're a feisty one, aren't ya?" Niall looks behind Harry's head. "Am I right, Louis?"

Harry nearly passes out again at the sound of his man's name. He turns around, seeing Louis sat behind a desk with legs propped up. "He is quite fiesty." Louis says, motioning to Harry to sit on his lap. The younger boy wastes no time to follow orders and does what he's told.

"Alright, show's over," Niall says to the hitmen, pushing them out of Louis' office. "Get ya asses out here! Shoo!" He turns to Louis and Harry salutes them goodbye before running out and slamming the door shut.

"Did you have a fun day?" Louis asks Harry now that they're alone.

Harry looks at him in disbelief. "Fun? It was weird. Like my whole week has been weird." He examines the office, not finding anything too exciting but boring furniture and stacks of papers. "I thought I as just going to have a relaxing day at my favorite café, but then I find out that my boyfriend is a drug lord and he has secret warehouses around the country, and next thing I know I have a gun pointed to my head."

"About that," Louis bites his lip. "I was going to tell you I was a drug lord, but I could not come up with a way to. This is not a situation that is easy to explain without scaring you. You do not understand how relieved I am that you still want to be with me." Harry sighs to himself and lays against Louis' chest. He wishes he could say the same, but his situation is too extreme and inhumane there's no chance he could tell him that he's truly a monster. He takes Louis head into his hands and kisses him passionately, hoping to distract himself from thinking about it any longer. "Can we go home?" Harry asks after they pull apart. Louis massages the top of his head and lays a soft kiss. "Sorry, love," Louis says. "I would love to be home but Zayn and Liam wanted us to join them at the movies. I told them we would meet them over there after this whole fiasco that Niall pulled to scare you was over."

"So me coming here was planned all along?" Harry frowns.

"No." Louis shakes his head. "Zayn decided that on his own, that bastard. Niall planned this holding you hostage thing. He knew you left the second you stepped a foot away from him and wanted to teach you a lesson. He is a crazy guy, but a mad genius. Without him, this business would not have been so successful."

"Hm." Harry thinks about the consequences Louis would have to face if he was caught, then remembers how rich Louis is and doesn't think about it anymore. "Well I think you two make a great team." He says innocently. He kisses Louis again and straddles his lap, moaning and grinding when Louis grabs his ass and squeezes. After Harry blows him, they head outside to the Range Rover and Harry makes sure all the workers know what he did as he walks by them with his hair tousled and lips cherry red.

"You are something, Harry Styles." Louis says, trying to hide the boner he got just by looking at Harry look so dazzling. Harry notices and doesn’t hide his smug.

 

❈

 

The grand opening of the new, remodeled Tetra Movie Theater is a big event that has been buzzed about ever since the plans were made public. The theater is the oldest in town so it has been busy with guests trying to get any movie ticket they could lay their hands on. There are so many people, Harry and Louis struggle to find parking for the longest time, until Harry gets frustrated and "convinces" a woman to give up her spot near the front of the building. They eventually meet up with Zayn and Liam by the ticket booth.

"Hi guys." Liam greets. Zayn looks equally as frustrated as Harry about the crowd. "Lucky for us, I got the last for tickets for a cool movie."

"Great--" Louis says but gets cut off when Harry's body rams into him. A large man hadn't been watching and bumped into Harry, knocking him down onto Louis. "Watch where you're standing!" The man yells. Harry swings a fist to punch him but Louis grabs him by the waist and runs inside before they're denied access into the theater for starting a fight. The detailed art inside the building is so beautiful, Louis forgets that he's holding Harry and just stands there in amazement while the younger boy limps in defeat in his arms. "Oh, sorry, babe," Louis sets him down. Harry pulls his shirt down and fixes his hair. "Yeah, yeah."

By the time the boys have taken their seats in the theater and the movie has begun to play, their moods have calmed down and nothing treacherous occurs for the first time. Liam chose the film, _Lucy_ , a movie about a woman who gains psychokinetic abilities when a drug is absorbed into her bloodstream. Harry feels tense throughout it. He can’t help but keep glancing over at Louis to see his reaction when Lucy's abilities get stronger and she becomes more dangerous. The film soon ends and the boys leave the theater.

"That was insane." Louis says as they walk out the doors, hand-in-hand with Harry. "If it were to happen in real life, I swear I would do whatever it takes to take them down." Zayn and Liam stay quiet. Harry feels heart start to race. "That movie is exaggerated." He mumbles.

"Nonsense." Louis says. "It is possible, and the world will end if it does. Humans cannot be trusted with so much power."

"You trust me."

"Huh?"

Harry glances down at their intertwined hands. "Nothing." He sighs.

 

❧


	4. navy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please, if you're writing a story, make sure to finish it first before posting it. i've made the mistake

❧

In the following afternoon, Louis peers into his bedroom and sees Harry lying under the covers, passed out and softly snoring to the music that plays through the radio. He went to bed after returning from the theater and told Louis that he only wanted to sleep. 

Since Louis woke up, he has been patiently waiting for his sleeping beauty to wake up by keeping himself busy with his new oil paints from Rome.

Another hour passes.

Harry's green eyes flutter open to the sound of laughter and clinking glasses coming from the kitchen. He lifts his head, looking hazily around the room and sighing contently when the digital clock flashes 6:30 p.m. He eventually climbs out of the covers and drags himself to the bedroom wall to rest his hand against the surface and feel the presence of the people in the other room. He recognizes the first two as Louis and Niall, the third a woman, but the fourth shocks him and he falls back onto the bed. 

“What the fuck.” Harry whispers to himself, clutching his tingling hand. He goes to the en-suite, takes off the clothes from the night before, and takes a quick shower to calm himself down. As his hair dries, he hydrates his face with a moisturizer and rubs an enriching lotion onto his body. He changes into a white, silk shirt, leaving the first four buttons unbuttoned, and slips into skin tight jeans that make his thighs look marvelous. After dabbing on a bit of red lipstick, he smiles satisfyingly into the mirror and heads to the kitchen feeling like a million-dollar man. He isn't surprised when Louis and his guests stop their conversation to watch him serve himself a glass of white wine. He takes a drink, very aware of the eyes watching him like hungry wolves. 

“Oh, hello.” Harry greets. “My apologies, I wasn't aware that Louis had guests.” 

Louis, aroused by Harry's appearance, gets up from his seat and gives his boy a kiss on the cheek. “It's alright, love. My fault for not telling you earlier.” He leads Harry to the bar, where a game of poker is being played, to introduce himself to everyone individually. Niall is the first to get up to shake Harry's hand. They laugh and joke about the incident at the warehouse, before Harry excuses himself and goes over to greet the woman who's texting on her phone with a lit cigarette between her fingers. She has long, light brown hair with blunt bangs and has on a tight black dress that shows off her impressive figure. 

“Harry, this is my good friend, Violet.” Louis tells him. “Violet, this is my boyfriend, Harry.” 

Violet sets down her cigarette and shakes Harry's hand. “How are you, Harry?” She asks, giving him a sly smile. 

Harry doesn't return it. He twirls the wine in the glass, feeling unimpressed with the woman, and says, “Fine.” 

Violet nods and looks at Louis seductively as they turn away, but Harry doesn’t miss it. It reminds him that this isn't the first time he's seen her. At the Woodrock bar the other night, Violet practically sat on Louis' lap when the older man went to go drink with her and their friends.

After they excuse themselves from Violet, they move onto the man that sits at the end of the bar drinking a pint of beer. Harry pretends to not notice the bandages wrapped around his leg. “Hey,” The man says to him, holding his hand out. “I'm Evan.” Harry takes it and gives him a firm handshake. He remains calm on the outside, but on the inside, he's furious because o _f course_  Evan—the man who tried to  _skin_ him—has managed to come back into his life. Why does it have to happen to him? Most importantly, how does he even know Louis? Harry asks him about it, and Evan tells him that he doesn’t.

 “He came with Violet.” Louis says, patting Evan's back. “I just met him as well. If you don’t mind me asking, mate, what happened to your leg?” Harry wants to punch him for asking such a diabolical question. Unfortunately for him, Evan doesn’t seem to mind talking about it.

 “Truthfully,” Evan says, rubbing his neck. “It's stupid, but I got drunk one night and somehow ended up messing with these really sharp knives. It sucked because I regained consciousness just as the paramedics were carrying me out of my house. Trust me when I say a stabbed leg hurts like a motherfucker.”

“Sounds rough.” Louis says apologetically. “I'm glad you're doing well now.”

“Yeah, I'm all good.” Evan smiles. 

“When the hell are we getting food?” Niall disrupts their conversation from where he's stood. “I've been waiting for hours.” 

“We'll go right now, Niall.” Louis sighs. “Anyone want to come with?” Evan gets up to join them, but Violet stays in her seat. “How about you, Harry?” Louis pulls his boy closer to him. Harry politely shakes his head and wraps his arms around Louis' neck, feeling unashamed when they start to kiss. He knows Violet is bitter about it, and it only encourages him to go in deeper. Niall eventually pulls Louis off of him, and the older man is left with ruffled hair and a tint of red on his lips. “Okay, you dogs,” Niall says, clearly disgusted. “We're leaving.” The three men walk out the door, leaving Harry and Violet alone in the kitchen with nothing but the full cabinets of alcohol to entertain themselves with. 

While Violet continues to type away on her phone, Harry prepares them drinks. 

“So, you and Louis are good friends.” Harry says with his raspy voice as he pours rich wine into the glasses. “Have you known him for a long time?”

Violet sets her phone down, lays her head on her hands with her elbows propped up, and smirks at him. “We've known each other for quite a while, actually. I was at a club dancing with my girls when Louis appeared behind me, kissed my neck, and asked me to dance with him. It was  _so_ lovely.” Harry nods, continuing to slice lemons with more force. Though he wasn't sure about hurting a close friend of Louis, he now knows that she deserves pain and suffering. He takes a slice of lemon and sucks on it, feeling un-bothered. “That is lovely.” Harry tells Violet, handing her a glass after mixing in orange liqueur. “I’ll have to remind Louis to tell me the story of how we met next time he's fucking my ass hard.”

Violet rolls her eyes. “Fuck off.” She scoffs. “We both know he’d rather be with me than you. He told me so during our night out.”

“Right.” Harry downs his drink.

“Oh, don’t be jealous.” Violet lifts the glass to her lips. “Jealousy looks real ugly on you. Trust me.” She takes a big gulp of the alcoholic drink and falls to the floor the second the liquid goes down her throat, nearly throwing up at the heavy feeling in her stomach and the rush to her head. 

“Gross.” Harry frowns, watching as she begins to dry heave. 

“I-I can't...” Violet gets up, clinging onto the chair for support. “What the hell did you give me?” 

Annoyed by her weak state, Harry grabs onto a clump of her hair and drags her out of the apartment, pushing her into the elevator with his heeled boot and drenching her with the sangria. He throws the glass on her, hissing, “stupid bitch,” as the doors close and her passed out body is sent down to the lobby. He goes back into the privacy of the apartment and begins to focus all his energy into taking control of Violet's brain. When he's gained access, Violet's body lifts itself from the elevator floor and walks out to the back of the building, crashing onto the hood of her car and throwing up the toxins in her stomach. 

In the apartment, Harry stumbles around faintly when he regains consciousness in his own brain, but still finds humor in the situation and bursts out laughing. 

When the boys return with their dinner, they find Harry out in the balcony alone, watching the boulevard below and softly humming a 50's tune. He looks like an artwork with his hair blowing lightly from the breeze and the indoor lights illuminating his features perfectly. Louis doesn't want to miss the opportunity for a new painting, so he gets his phone out and takes a picture. Harry turns around just as Louis takes another, but his photogenic beauty makes the photo look like a masterpiece. Louis is filled with so much love for his boy, he can't help but just stand there and admire him. “Are you alright?” Louis asks softly, walking up behind Harry and wrapping his arms around his neck.  

Harry nods, kissing his hand lovingly. “Of course. Why do you ask?”

“Well, you did sleep for a long time earlier. I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up.”

The streets below grow quieter as the night remains free of parties. Harry wishes it was livelier so he has a reason to get drunk and enjoy his young age with strangers who aim for the same desire. 

He sighs, twirling a curl around his finger. “I just haven't been sleeping well, so I crashed. It happens a lot, don’t worry when it does.” Louis nods, understanding that Harry doesn't want to talk about it no longer, so he asks about Violet instead. Harry shrugs, “She got trashed the moment you left. I tried to stop her, but she didn't let me. Then she complained about having a headache and left home.” It's not like Violet to get drunk out of nowhere since she's obsessed with keeping up her perfect reputation, but Louis doesn't question it for the sake of not wanting to irritate Harry. He goes back inside to have dinner with Niall and Evan, leaving the younger boy alone on the balcony.

Sitting in silence drifts Harry into thinking of an endless sea of memories. During his younger years, the only motive he possessed was sleeping with men and getting drunk just because he didn’t have to deal with consequences. He'd go to different towns and cities for the bars and perform songs drunkenly on low-dimmed stages. Every night, he would end up in a stall in the boy's bathroom crying with a stranger leaving kisses and marks on his neck. He believed that he belonged to no one and no one belonged to him, but fate decided differently. Harry knows that Louis is the perfect, wealthy man that he was destined to fall in love with. He can't let any person, especially Violet, ruin what he's dreamt of for so long.

A sudden giggle from below startles Harry. A man and a woman walk by swinging a small girl in a pastel yellow dress in their hands. The little one looks tired but seems to still enjoy accompanying her parents. 

It reminds Harry of the fairly-happy memories he experienced as a young boy. It was in Marina's home, a beautiful, black modern house in the outskirts of town, decorated exquisitely with high-priced furniture and marble interior. He grew there for nine years, learning the functions of mind control and ways to manage it. Marina was very loving at times, but mostly treated him like a science project.

He will never forget the day he left on his 8th birthday.

It was 6:00 in the morning on February 1st. Harry had come out of his bedroom for the first time in days to find Marina standing at the front door with a backpack. She asked him if he slept well, and Harry replied with a simple nod. Marina smiled and held out her hand for him to take, then led him out the door. It was the first time Harry had ever stepped foot outside the house. He was so immersed in the view, he hadn't realized that Marina handed him the backpack and went back inside. He tried to open the door, but it was locked. 

“Marina?” Harry felt himself begin to panic.  He tried his hardest to unlock it with his mind, but it only made his head hurt. Marina had cast a spell on the doorknob, he'd never be able to open it. With his head bowed down in sorrow, he stepped away from the door and began walking deeper into the forest, heading to nowhere in particular. 

Years later, Marina walked aimlessly through the town streets when she heard noises in an alleyway and found Harry, drunk out of his mind, kneeled in front of a man with his head bobbing. She isn't sure what to feel about the person he grew to be. 

Harry doesn’t know either.

❈

The leaves on the oak tree die into a rusty orange as Harry stares at them with piercing eyes. Last night, Louis and Niall stumbled upon Violet when they left to the warehouse, so they took her home and forced Harry to watch her while they dealt with work. As a thank you, Louis has surprised Harry with a date in the park but the younger boy is not pleased to be around so many loud families. They're sat on a grey blanket with an assortment of foods and fruits surrounded them while Louis paints the autumn trees on a small canvas. 

Harry is lying down, legs crossed and hands resting on his stomach. He's staring up at the cloudless sky and thinking of nothing but the love he hides from Marina. After he left, he always felt the need to hate her for making him leave when he was so helpless, but now he's considering changing his mind. Since Marina is a witch, she can easily take his life away for being so inconsiderate and cussing her out any time she visits him, but she doesn't. He's never understood why. 

Time passes slower than a lazy cat and Harry's exhausted by the end of their date from lying outdoors for so long. He's craving exhilaration and Louis is not the person that's going to give it to him. The older man is still quietly painting as Harry finishes up packing their picnic and drinking the rest of their shared champagne. 

“Babe,” Harry taps hit foot against Louis' thigh. “Let's go.”

Louis puts the end of the paint brush in his mouth and admires the art with pride and admiration. “I would say this is my best work,” Louis says, glancing up at Harry. “But it doesn't compare to the one you inspired, my love.” Harry smiles softly at the look of devotion in Louis' eyes. He puts two fingers under Louis' chin and lifts his head up, pressing his lips against his man's soft ones. Louis tastes of cool mint and Harry can't get enough of it. 

Holding hands, they leave the park and walk to a nearby café for a soothing cup of tea. The inside is decorated fairly simple with pastel colors, white furniture, and small paintings of tea pots on the wall. The server, a kind-looking man, greets Louis and offers him samples of their different teas to make sure he chooses the perfect one. 

“I’m going to go with the good ol’ Yorkshire tea." Louis tells the man. “You know,” He says pridefully, “I was born in South Yorkshire.” The man giggles. Harry rolls his eyes. He doesn’t care for it, until the man takes it too far and tries to give Louis a kiss on the cheek as he hands him the cup of tea. Louis steps back, handing Harry the cup. “I'm going to pretend that didn’t happen.” He says as he turns to head to the restroom, leaving Harry and the man alone in the quiet café. The curly-haired boy stands in front of the counter and stares the man down as he twirls his spoon in his coffee with a pathetic grin that makes Harry's blood boil. 

“You tried to kiss my man.” Harry says, eyeing his khakis and bland hair with a judgmental frown. He can't believe a person so distastful in self-respect has the grit to touch an upscale man like Louis. _He's pathetic_ , Harry thinks,  _he should be grateful to even be near me._ The man, un-bothered by Harry's intense stare, doesn't look at him and continues wiping down the service counters. “Sorry, I didn’t know he was your boyfriend.” He tells him, turning his back to him to clean the tea machine. “Doesn’t seem too interested in you, that’s all.” Harry glares harshly at the back of his head, making a sudden decision to reach for the little poison bottle that he stole from Marina. As the man occupies himself, he pours it into the coffee and watches it dissolve into the steaming liquid. 

Harry smiles at the man as he turns around, picks up the mug, lifts it up to his lips, and takes a small sip. He coughs roughly, then hacks up a small amount of blood. 

“I would say I’m sorry,” Harry bends over the counter and takes two $20 bills out of the cash register. “But then I’d be lying, and I am not a liar.”

Crying tears of blood, the man crawls to the back of the café to reach the emergency phone on the wall, but feeling too weak, he lays on the cracked tiles in defeat. Harry doesn't have to look to know that’s he's dead. He can hear his heart beat, just barely, then a second later it's gone. He doesn't feel any emotions as he slips on a pair of gloves and drops the body under the manager's desk.  _That's going to be one hell of a surprise_ , Harry laughs in his head. When he walks back into the front, Louis joins him a minute later with a disgusted look on his face. “I can’t smell because of how bad I stunk up the restroom.”

“Be thankful you can't.” Harry tells him, already smelling the stench of the man's body. Louis doesn't question him as usual, just leads him out of the café and heads to the Range Rover. 

“I have to go to the warehouse.” Louis says out of the blue as they settle into the leather seats of the car. “Things have been getting hectic now that I've expanded the consumer list. The amount of orders has basically doubled. I'll have to stay overnight to get work done.” Harry remains silent as Louis talks to him about the business that he does not care for. He stares out the window, watching the other cars fly by. 

It's still fairly early when the two men return home to the apartment. Harry goes straight to the kitchen and fixes himself a drink as Louis puts away his supplies in his art room. Harry glares down at the drink in his hand, feeling tormented by the constant silence in the apartment. 

“Louis!” He shouts. The older man rounds the corner a minute later with a concerned look on his face. Harry sighs, “Can I give you a blow job?”

Louis is stunned for a second by the question, but nevertheless nods eagerly. Harry nods back and doesn’t waste any time to drop onto his knees in front of him. He unzips Louis' pants slowly, making the other man frustrated at the anticipation. “For heaven's sake, Harry,” Louis groans. “Hurry,  _please_.” Harry doesn't listen to him. He licks his lips and begins to palm Louis through his underwear, then pulls his dick out and licks the tip like a kitten. Louis nearly orgasms just by looking at his boy taking him in so well. “Look at you,” Louis pants, running a hang through Harry's soft hair. “So goddamn beautiful.” As Harry takes in Louis deeper, the sound of the front door opening startles the older man and he pushes away from Harry, quickly shoving his dick back into his pants. Harry remains on his knees, hair tousled and lips cherry red. He wants the person who barged in to see what they had rudely interrupted. 

“Harry?” Marina's voice booms throughout the apartment. “Where are you hiding?”

“Who the hell is that?” Louis says, still in a haze. Harry just smiles at the doorway as Marina enters the kitchen with a bouquet of royal blue roses in her arms. “Oh, hello,” She reaches out to shake Louis' hand. “You must be Louis.” Louis nods slowly, at a loss for words, and shakes her hand. Marina smiles warmly at him, then glares down at Harry, who's still in the same position. “Always have been a nasty boy.” She says. “Do yourself a favor and clean up.” Harry mimics a blowjob before getting up and leaving to use the bathroom. 

Louis taps his fingers against the counter. Marina admires her flowers. 

“Excuse me,” Louis speaks up, “I am just going to go check on Harry.” He walks to the bathroom and finds Harry standing naked in front of the mirror, focused on fixing his curls perfectly with hairspray. 

“Would you mind telling me who that woman is?” Louis says, frustrated, and takes away the hairspray from Harry’s hand. “And why she just barged into our home?”

“You’re leaving me for work,  _like always_ , so I invited her over.” Harry shrugs, avoiding eye contact with Louis. “I told her to let herself in.” He slips back into his jeans but decides to leave his shirt off to show off his tattoos. Recently he’s been wanting more. 

“You knew she was coming over, yet you still sucked my dick?” Louis asks incredulously.

Harry nods, staring at his reflection in the mirror. “I wasn’t going to wait to get what I want.”

Louis, irritated with Harry, turns around and walks out. The younger boy smiles at himself through the mirror and eventually follows behind. 

Marina has moved to the living room and is admiring all of Louis' artwork on the cream-colored walls, specifically the one of Harry. She turns as the two walk in, then looks at Louis apologetically. “I'm assuming Harry didn't tell you I was coming.”

“No, he did not.” Louis tells her, feeling the heat of embarrassment on his cheeks. “I'm sorry you had to see that.”

Marina laughs lightly. “Don’t worry, I’m used to seeing this. Harry has always been shameless, even as a kid.”

“Oh.” Louis’ eyebrows raise. He tries to ignore the first part. “You knew Harry as a young boy?” 

Marina crosses her arms, looking directly at Harry with a devious look. “Well, I am his mother.”

Louis is unsure how to react with this sudden information, but thankfully his phone buzzes in his pocket. It’s Niall texting him frantically about the frenzy of bagged cocaine they had received. “I, um...” Louis rubs his eyes. The stress from Harry and his business is catching up to him. “I'm very sorry,” Louis grabs Marina's hands, “but is it possible for us to properly meet another time? Over dinner? There's an emergency at work that I  _really_  need to attend to.”

Marina nods understandingly. “Oh, yes, of course. Any time would be perfect.” Louis thanks her and wastes no time to rush out of the apartment, leaving Marina and Harry alone together. The tension of the room worsens the second the door closes. 

Harry breathes heavily in anger. “Are you fucking insane?” He yells at her. Marina doesn't seem to care for it. “How many times to I have to tell you not to barge in whenever you goddamn feel like!”

Marina takes a seat onto the couch and crosses her legs, hands rested on her lap. The sunlight through the window brightens her dark brown eyes. “Calm down. Louis’ not too frazzled by it.” 

Harry scoffs. “Only because I told him I invited you over.”

Marina smiles in response. Falling into an uncomfortable silence, Marina looks around the room until she makes eye contact with the tattoos scattered across Harry’s body. A sudden idea pops into her head. 

“How about we go get a new tattoo together?” She suggests. It’s possible that she and Harry could finally bond over something they both enjoy.

Harry crosses his arms and grumbles at the idea. “I’d rather have a bullet burst through my brain.” 

“I’m trying to be nice to you.” Marina’s tone of voice lowers. “Now, will you stay here and have a bullet burst through your brain, or will you come with me to have a delightful evening together?” She stands up and goes to grab her coat from the closet. “Don’t stress about your decision too much,” She adds on, adjusting her coat in the mirror. “I’m happy to oblige with either.” 

Marina and Harry stand there in an intense ambiance, eyes piercing into each other’s so furiously, until Harry let’s a breath through his nose. His arms fall to his sides in defeat. He quietly says, “I’ll go get dressed,” and leaves to his bedroom. 

Marina watches him go, somehow not fully satisfied. 

❈

The tattoo parlor is set in a busted building in a nearby town that Harry has never heard of. The outside is uncomfortably quiet, but he knows that the real danger is hidden underneath the isolated streets. He can’t wait to return on his own to discover what the town has in store for him.

As they wait outside for the owner to open the door, Harry catches sight of a couple dining in a low-lit restaurant, both staring at him with lust written on their faces. He smirks at them, ready to go over to join them, but the sound of the door unlocking makes him forget about the couple. The door opens, revealing a tall woman with thick, black curly hair and dark brown eyes. She has various tattoos, some on her arms, and some on her chest. 

 “Come in,” The woman says, holding the door open for Harry and Marina. The tattoo parlor is nothing out of the extraordinary, just the typical dimmed lighting, black couches, and red walls with tattoo art. Harry doesn’t understand why Marina chose such a boring place when they have the opportunity to go wherever in the world. 

“So, what can I do for you two?” The woman slides to the back of the counter, bunching her hair up into a bun in the process. 

“I was thinking of getting a tattoo, but I’m kind of hesitant.” Marina sighs, flipping through the tattoo/piercing booklet. She looks at the images of models covered in tattoos with uncertainty until she catches sight of a woman modeling a beautiful pair of gold earrings. “Oh, actually, I want to get my ears pierced.” The woman nods, then looks over at Harry, who’s lost himself in the full-length mirror. He’s taking pictures of himself in the navy blue faux fur coat that Louis had bought him and sending them with the rose emoji scattered across the screen. 

“Harry.” Marina says in annoyance. The younger boy turns and walks back to them as if he has no care in the world. The tattoo artist doesn’t seem too pleased by him. 

“I want a tattoo on my thigh.” Harry tells the woman. “A tiger. It's my boyfriend's favorite animal.” 

She nods at his request. To Harry's surprise, she waves for them to follow her to the back room without having them sign any paperwork. 

“Whoever's going first can sit.” She tells them as she leaves to create the stencil for Harry's tattoo. With no warning, Harry strips from his jeans and plops down onto the leather seat, smiling brightly at the needles that are going to pierce his skin. He's always loved the pain. 

“Can I go first?” Harry asks Marina. 

She sets her purse on the counter and takes a seat across from him. “I suppose.”

Nobody speaks when the tattoo artist returns. She gathers her equipment and cleans Harry's skin, then uses water to moisten the area for the stencil application. Harry hadn't told her specifically what he had wanted, so she just used the face of a tiger. When she begins to tattoo his skin, Harry watches with no pain on his face, just enjoyment. 

“Look at you.” Marina takes her phone out to take a picture of him. Harry poses with a bright grin and his arms behind his head. 

After a couple hours have passed, the tattoo artist completes her work and cleans the skin before bandaging it and setting Harry free. The younger boy gets up and stretches his tired body. “Goddamn,” He says at his reflection from the mirror. “This tattoo is going to look so sexy.” 

Marina shakes her head in disbelief. She wants to scold him for using that language in front of another person, but the tattoo artist tells her to take a seat. As she gets her piercing done, Harry tells them that he has to pee and walks out of the room. He goes down the hallway and stops in front of the restroom, but spots a door that's labelled,  _Employee's Only_. Curious, he opens the locked door and discovers that it leads to the basement. 

“Well clearly this bitch is hiding something.” Harry says to himself. With no hesitation, he heads down the stairs and uses his mind to turn on the one light that hangs from the ceiling. As soon as it flickers on, Harry frowns at the hideous room filled with display cases. They contain various bottles of liquids and containers that preserve odd plants. 

“Harry?” Marina voice booms from upstairs. 

“ _Fuck_.” Harry curses, quickly turning off the lights and sprinting up the stairs just as the two women walk out the door. Marina looks at him suspiciously. “Are you alright?” She asks, noticing his heavy breathing. 

“Yeah.” Harry runs a hand through his hair. “I just...I had a heavy breakfast and it came out.” 

“Oh, you threw up?” 

Harry blinks once. “No.”

Marina stares at him, then walks away. He follows behind. 

At the front, the tattoo artist collects their payment and gives them information on cleaning the tattoo and piercing. They thank her, and she thanks them back. “No problem. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to visit or call me.” They thank her once again before heading towards the door, but Harry turns back one last time. “What is your name?” He asks her. 

She smiles up from her book and says, “Luna.”

❈

The town is still quiet when Harry and Marina walk out of the parlor. The only difference is the sky had grown darker and the moon and stars have come out of their hiding. Harry looks up and sighs. He's feeling empty once again and doesn’t know what to do. He doesn't want to be with Marina, or Louis, or with anybody. 

“Are you coming?” Marina asks from her car. 

Harry turns to her and shakes his head. 

“Alright.” She rolls the window up and waves him goodbye. Harry watches her drive away, then proceeds to walk down the streets in search for a restaurant. He hasn't eaten for hours and is feeling lightheaded because of it. Eventually, he finds a diner and stumbles through the door, not waiting for one of the waitresses to choose a booth for him. The music that plays from the flashing jukebox is giving him a headache, so he uses the little energy that he has left to shut it off. 

It stirs people up, but they eventually forget about it. 

“What can I get you?” A pretty blonde asks Harry. He orders a water and a grilled cheese. She nods and walks away, then comes back with his order, plus a side of strawberries. He smiles gratefully and thanks her. 

After he's finishes and paid, he leaves. He sits in front of a closed book store and pulls out his phone, scrolling down his contacts until he finds him. It rings three times until he picks up. 

 

 _“Hello?”_  Louis' answers softly. His voice makes Harry choke up. 

“Hi.” Harry replies, clearly trying to hold back tears.

_“Hi, love. Where are you?”_

Harry looks around. “I... I'm not sure.” 

_“You're not sure?”_

“No, I don't know. Please come get me.” 

_“How am I supposed to get you if you don't know where you are, love?”_

“I don’t know.” Harry whines. 

The line goes quiet. Harry thinks he's hung up until Louis asks,  _“Can you go ask someone where you are?_ ” 

“Okay.” Harry agrees and gets up. He keeps the phone close to his ear as he walks back to diner and goes to the waitress that served him. “Hi, do you know where I am?” She looks concerned, but nevertheless tells him he's in Kenny's Diner. He thanks her and leaves once again. 

“I'm at Kenny's Diner.” Harry tells Louis through the phone. 

_“Oh, I know where that is. I'm at the warehouse, it's not too far from here.”_

“Hurry please.”

 _“I will. Don't go anywhere.”_  Louis hangs up. Harry sighs and tilts his head back against the wall, looking for anything to entertain him. It seems like the later the hour gets, the more the town awakens from its slumber. 

Across the street, a group of people walk closely together, wearing the most beautiful clothing that Harry has ever seen. They look like they just stepped out of a Vogue magazine, with long legs and ridiculous shoes. Their hair colors are extraordinary mixes of grey's and red's. 

To his left, a couple prance around as if they're in a romantic film set in Italy. They look so happy, so in love. One of them even approaches Harry and hands him a white rose. 

He sits there admiring its pedals, when the sound of a guitar and the loveliest voice catches his attention. It's a young boy, singing “Once Upon A Dream.” He seems to have just finished a performance since his hair is tousled and beads of sweat run down his forehead. Harry tilts his head curiously, then gets up to run after the boy. 

“Excuse me.” Harry touches the boy's shoulder.

He turns around and has to look up high to meet Harry's eyes. “Yes?”

“Are you a performer?”

“Yes.”

“Where did you perform?”

The boy turns around and points to the abandoned building across from Kenny's Diner. Harry grins, then texts Louis to meet him there instead. Quickly thanking the boy, Harry sprints to the building and swings the door open, only to find nothing but an array of several doors. He puts his hand on the walls and feels the vibrations of voices and music coming from the last door on the right. He texts Louis again, then goes on his way.

Outside, Louis arrives in front of the building minutes later. He steps out the car, looking around at the town he's been to before with Niall, Zayn, and Liam. They're very faint memories, since every time he visits he feels the need to drink and smoke weed. He tries not to think about it and follows Harry's directions instead. 

Louis is not surprised to see that Harry has found a hidden bar. It's fairly big, with high ceilings and walls decorated with blue velvet. He goes straight to the bartender and asks them for a martini, thanking the man with a high tip. As he takes a seat, the room arises with applauds. Louis turns to face the stage and sees the familiar silhouette of a curly-haired boy sitting at the piano. 

The lights turn on, creating a dark purple hue on stage. 

_“_ _You said I was the most exotic flower, holding me tight in our final hour.”_

Chills run down Louis' spine at the sound of Harry's deep voice. He looks so beautiful in the spotlight. 

_“It is_ _n't that hard boy to like you or love you. I'd follow you down, down, down, you're unbelievable. If you're going crazy, just grab me and take me. I'd follow you down, down, down, anywhere, anywhere.”_

He plays the piano with such passion and lust, Louis doesn't know how to contain himself from making love to him right then and there. 

_“_ _One for the money, and two for the show. I love you honey, I'm ready, I'm ready to go. How did you get that way? I don't know. You're screwed up and brilliant, look like a million-dollar man, so why is my heart broke?”_

Harry finishes the song, and the crowd applauds once more. He doesn't hear them or their praise but focuses only on the man sitting across the room. They sit there staring at each other until Louis makes the first move and runs for his treasure. 

“You're extraordinary.” Louis tells him, holding him close. 

Harry just kisses him in response, pulling him into an empty booth and showing him how grateful he is until they're out of breath and eager for more. 

It's five in the morning when Louis and Harry walk out of the bar, hand-in-hand. They're in a haze from their endless love and drinks. Louis twirls Harry, kisses his cheeks, and carries him across the street. 

“How did this happen?” Louis laughs when they've settled into the comfort of his car. 

Harry closes his eyes and sighs contently. “Don't question it, my love. Just enjoy it.”

Louis agrees. He turns on the car and plays the radio quietly as they drive back to the apartment. Louis goes straight to bed once they’ve arrived, but Harry goes to the bathroom to shower and do his nighttime routine. It's heavenly for Louis, to hear the sound of the shower running and the angelic sound of Harry's singing. 

“What are you doing tomorrow?” Harry asks as he steps out of the shower. 

“I'm having a get-together.” Louis says, facing him from where he lies. Harry looks at him and smiles. “Am I invited?”

Louis closes his eyes and snuggles deeper into the pillow. “Of course not.”

“Really?” Harry pouts. “Guess I'll just have to take my beauty elsewhere.” 

“Please do—wait a minute.”

Harry looks back at Louis and sees him staring down at his bare thigh when he removes his towel. “Oh,” Harry stands proudly. “I got a tattoo.” 

“I see.” Louis says slowly. “Is that why you were over at that weird town?”

Harry nods. Louis goes back to sleep. 

Harry looks at the mirror, feeling satisfied and ready for whatever tomorrow is going to bring. He's not sure what kind of “get-together” Louis is having, but it doesn't matter because he's going to go crazy either way. 

He'll make sure of it.

❧

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading!!

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading this it means the world!!


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